Today we woke to the ship’s nearing Punta Cormorant, the northernmost point of Floreana Island, where we disembarked for an early morning walk in search of wildlife. While ashore, we observed a small flock of flamingos feeding in a beautiful brackish pond. Further along, we came upon a beach containing a constellation of green sea turtles patiently making their way into the ocean. It is the latest part of the nesting season on this beach, which was marked, literally, by a series of sand tracks left by females who have come ashore to deposit and bury their eggs in the sand before returning to the waters.
Near the end of our walk, we found a few blue-footed boobies perched at a cliff’s edge, while others fed along the shore. After we ourselves fed back aboard National Geographic Islander, we went back out for a Zodiac ride along Champion Islet. This was a great opportunity to observe different species of sea birds, such as brown noddy terns, frigate birds, and swallowtail gulls. If this weren’t already enough, we also went deep water snorkeling along the shore of this islet!
Some guests went for kayaking and paddleboarding later that afternoon while others went to visit Post Office Bay. We found ourselves talking at length with one another about the unique relations humans have had over time with such an ecologically peculiar set of islands as those of Galapagos. We ended the day at Post Office Beach. A few walked along the beach, a few more went for a swim, every one of us got a lifetime out of our time here on Floreana Island.
